Football United

Benfica ended a six-game winless streak in all competitions on Saturday with a 1-0 victory at CS Marítimo. Mantorras scored the only goal of the game in the second half of a tight contest after coming on as a substitute for Andrei Kariaka. The Angolan international had an effort disallowed shortly after the break before claiming the winner on 65 minutes. The victory was enough to move Benfica up to sixth in the Portuguese Liga standings, still six points adrift of leaders FC Porto.

Going into the game, Benfica coach Ronald Koeman was without Simão, Fabrizio Miccoli (both thigh), Manuel Fernandes (groin), Giorgios Karagounis (foot) and goalkeeper José Moreira (knee). Faced with these problems the Dutch coach handed Alcides a rare start at right-back, while there was also room for centre-back Ricardo Rocha, who replaced Anderson in the lineup.

Koeman later revealed: "It was very hard for us. We started well but after ten minutes we faced difficulties. However, we deserved to win because we had several chances to score, while Marítimo didn't enjoy any. This result is very important for us because it allows us to go into the match against Manchester United in a better frame of mind".

SUPERLIGA

Pos. Team Pld Pts
1. Porto 13 28
2. Nacional 13 27
3. Setubal 13 26
4. Braga 13 26
5. Sporting 13 24
6. Benfica 13 22

Source: uefa.com, slbenfica.pt